Onam 2023: Mumbai's Keralite community gears up for vibrant celebrations

For Sarada Narayan, Onam is the best time of the year in Chembur. It is because her family hails from Palakkad in Kerala and moved to Mumbai many decades ago. Sarada says the central suburb boasts of a lot of Keralites but not many people know about it. "You may spot more of us in a crowd here than any other community," laughs the 30-year-old. "Since there are a lot of Tamils and Keralites in Chembur, I am sure my grandfather must have chosen Chembur for a reason," she adds.

Every year, people from Kerala who call Mumbai their home come together to celebrate Onam in the city. Members of the family come together to make the pookalam, cooking the many dishes in the Sadhya, and then enjoy a delicious meal with family and friends. Onam 2023 is observed from August 20 to 31, with the significant day of Thiruvonam on August 29.

Interestingly, if one talks about Mumbai's South Indian community, the first neighbourhood that comes to mind is Matunga, which has a large Keralite and Tamil population. It not only boasts of many people from the community but also a lot of eateries that are very famous and loved by all. However, if one looks beyond that, there are many other pockets in the city that have a large population of Keralites including Dombivali, Kalyan, and Goregaon too. They have come to the city over the decades in search of work but also settled down in places where they found people from their community and Chembur is one of them. Mumbaikars from the community, who are an active part of celebrations, tell us that there are large gatherings conducted by the ‘samajam' that not only include pookalam making competitions but also ones that have singing, dance and other activities before they sit down to indulge in a feast of the Sadhya.

Palakkad in Mumbai
Even though they are away from home, they have still managed to stay true to their region, which defines their celebrations, and it is no different for Sarada. She explains, "At our home, although Pal Ada is like the payasam that is made in all homes during Onam, my mom would still make a Semiya (vermicelli) payasam as that is a mixture of Malayali and Tamil tradition."

Being on the border of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, she says her family has been living in Palakkad for eons and that means even her wedding lunch had traditional sadhya food with Tamil varieties on it, and it is no different for Onam. "Additionally, we celebrate it differently by cleaning all the ‘urulis' (brass utensils) in the morning and make all the sadhya items in the back yard with wood logs and serve it to the whole family," says the city-based home chef, who runs South Side Mumbai that dishes out delicious south Indian food.

Sense of community
Meanwhile, Kushel HM, a former Mumbaikar who resided in Kalyan before relocating to Kannur, Kerala last year, fondly regarded the city as his home for a span of seven years. During this time, he spent five years in the eastern region, which is also recognised for its substantial Keralite population.

For the 31-year-old, who is deeply rooted in tradition, being away from home meant that he was going to miss out on the celebration. However, such is the community's bonding that once they got to know about his roots, the local community made sure to invite and call him for all festival celebrations and gatherings. While he wasn't able to attend them due to his hectic working hours, he says, "It felt like home away from home while I was there."

While Kushel usually prefers muted celebrations, he makes up for it by enjoying different delicacies. One that is different from most parts of Kerala that indulge in a vegetarian Onam Sadhya. "Being from Kannur, we enjoy eating meat. So, we have non-vegetarian options as a part of our Sadhya like a delicious chicken curry and a fish fry along with the rest of the traditional Onam Sadhya." This year is going to be different because he is at home and will at least enjoy some of these dishes in a small way.

Closer home in Mumbai, Aditya Warrier, who has grown up in Malad says many people may not know but even the western suburb and Goregaon has a lot of Malayalees, most of whom are known to each other because of their strong community bonding. Although, the 26-year-old advertising professional's parents moved to Malad for economical and family-related reasons, he explains, "My mother has been living in Malad since childhood and one of the main reasons for it is that there is a big community of Keralites here." While there is no immediate gathering in his area for the festival, he says, "There is a Malayalee Samajam in Malad that carries out certain celebratory activities for Onam but there is no known gathering in my area for celebrating the day."

However, he says that many from the community go to the Bangur Nagar Ayappa Temple in Goregaon to celebrate Onam as it is a huge hub for us to pray. The temple is quite huge and houses a banquet area where Onam Sadhya is served." Unlike every year, Warrier and his family will be spending Onam in their hometown in Ernakulam in Kerala with the entire family that has come together for his brother's wedding.

Just like other Malayalees in Mumbai, even Anjana Kallat, another Malad resident will be celebrating Onam with family. Hailing from Thrissur, Anjana says they enjoy Inji Puli, Unniyappam, pineapple pachadi and kadala kootu curry for the festival along with banana chips and payasam. However, there is one unique addition. The 26-year-old says, "We make ada wrapped in banana leaves for breakfast on Onam." It is an aspect that other members of the community confirm isn't done in their homes during the festival, making every celebration unique in its own way.